Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana

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For The Diocese of same name in Indiana, see Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Indiana.
Diocese of Lafayette

Dioecesis Lafayettensis

Diocèse de Lafayette
The Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist 2.jpg
Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist
CoA Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana.svg
Location
Country United States
TerritoryCivil parishes of St. Landry, Evangeline, Lafayette, St. Martin, Iberia, St. Mary, Acadia and Vermilion
Ecclesiastical provinceArchdiocese of New Orleans
Statistics
Area5,779 sq mi (14,970 km2)
Population
- Total
- Catholics (including non-members)		(as of 2013)
629,000
330,000 (52.5%)
Parishes121
Information
DenominationCatholic
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
EstablishedJanuary 11, 1918
CathedralCathedral of Saint John the Evangelist
Patron saintImmaculate Conception
Secular priests190
Current leadership
PopeFrancis
BishopJ. Douglas Deshotel
Metropolitan ArchbishopGregory Michael Aymond
Bishops emeritusCharles Michael Jarrell
Map
Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana map.PNG
Website
diolaf.org

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana, officially the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana (Latin: Dioecesis Lafayettensis, French: Diocèse de Lafayette en Louisiane), is a diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States, and sui juris Latin Church in full communion with the pope of Rome. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana encompasses St. Landry, Evangeline, Lafayette, St. Martin, Iberia, St. Mary (except Morgan City, which is part of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux), Acadia, and Vermilion parishes in southcentral Louisiana. The diocese includes the heart of Cajun Louisiana (Acadiana) and is divided into four deaneries.[1][2][3][4]

History[]

Pope Benedict XV erected the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana on January 11, 1918, with territory taken from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, designating Saint John's Church in Lafayette as the cathedral of the new diocese and making it a suffragan of the same metropolitan archdiocesan see.[5] On January 29, 1980, Pope John Paul II erected the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lake Charles, assigning approximately the western half of the original territory of the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana to the new diocese and making the new diocese also a suffragan of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans.[6][7]

In 1974, Bishop Gerard Frey assigned Rev. Gilbert Gauthe as a Boy Scout chaplain despite the fact that Gauthe had previously come to Frey's attention for having molested altar boys.[8] Gauthe was stripped of his priestly duties after more allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced in 1983.[9] Bishop Frey was criticized for his handling of Gauthe's case, and in 1985 expressed his regret, saying, "I ask for the prayers and understanding of all our people and of all people of good will of every faith and belief. I deeply regret and am distressed by the suffering that has taken place because of the tragic events in the diocese over the past several years."[citation needed] In total, the diocese settled for more than $20 million in lawsuits involving Gauthe. Gauthe was later jailed for violating the Texas sex offender registration law and released in April 2010.[10]

In 1986, diocese priest Robert Lane Fontenot was convicted of sexually abusing three children and received a sentence of one year in prison and two years of probation and forced residence at Jemez Springs, New Mexico.[11]

In 2008, the diocese agreed to pay a financial settlement to a former altar boy who claimed diocese priest Valerie Pullman had sexually abused him in 1972.[11] Pullman later died in 2017 after being accused as early as 1966 of sexually abusing children at different parishes in the diocese.[11] In October 2018, former Acadiana priest Felix David Broussard received a five year prison sentence after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography.[12]

On March 29, 2019, former Morrow priest Michael Guirdy plead to committing acts of child molestation while serving in the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana.[13] He had surrendered to police in June 2018 after he was charged and began serving time in prison.[14] On April 30, 2019, Guidry received a seven-year prison sentence.[15] In April 2019, the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana released a list of 33 clergy who were "credibly accused" of committing acts of sex abuse while serving in the diocese.[16]

Bishops[]

The following lists ordinaries (bishops and archbishops of the diocese) and auxiliary bishops, and their years of service. They are followed by other priests of this diocese who became bishops.

Bishops of Lafayette in Louisiana[]

  1. Jules Jeanmard (1918-1956)
  2. Maurice Schexnayder (1956-1972)
  3. Gerard Louis Frey (1972-1989)
  4. Harry Joseph Flynn (1989-1994), appointed coadjutor archbishop and later Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
  5. Edward Joseph O'Donnell (1994-2002)
  6. Charles Michael Jarrell (2002-2016)
  7. J. Douglas Deshotel (2016–present)[17]

Former auxiliary bishops[]

Other priests of the diocese who became bishops[]

The following served as priests in Lafayette before being appointed bishops elsewhere:

Landmarks[]

The oldest church in the diocese is the parish church of St. Martinville, dating back to 1765.

High schools[]

Ecclesiastical province of New Orleans[]

See: List of the Catholic bishops of the United States#Province of New Orleans

Notes[]

  1. ^ "Central Deanery". Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  2. ^ "North Deanery". Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  3. ^ "South Deanery". Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  4. ^ "West Deanery". Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  5. ^ "The History of the Diocese of Lafayette". Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  6. ^ "Lake Charles (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  7. ^ "Diocese of Lafayette". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  8. ^ "Rev. Gilbert J. Gauthe-Assignment". www.bishopaccountability.org. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  9. ^ Radio, Minnesota Public. "It all began in Lafayette | Betrayed by Silence: Chapter One". Minnesota Public Radio News. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  10. ^ "Church abuse case haunts lawyer who defended priest". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b c http://bishop-accountability.org/member/psearch.jsp
  12. ^ https://www.theadvertiser.com/story/news/crime/2018/10/11/former-acadiana-priest-pleads-guilty-child-porn-charges/1602013002/
  13. ^ https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/louisiana/articles/2019-03-29/former-louisiana-priest-pleads-guilty-to-child-molestation
  14. ^ https://wgno.com/2018/06/14/catholic-priest-arrested-for-molesting-16-year-old-boy/
  15. ^ https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/news/crime_police/article_16838f14-6acc-11e9-bc6d-ff46915e7314.html
  16. ^ https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/news/article_605a3d58-5bcd-11e9-9d99-4bd713949528.html
  17. ^ bgunn@theadvocate.com, Billy Gunn. "Diocese of Lafayette announces new bishop: the Most Rev. J. Douglas Deshotel". The Advocate. Retrieved 2017-07-10.

External links[]

Coordinates: 30°12′50″N 92°01′46″W / 30.21389°N 92.02944°W / 30.21389; -92.02944

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